Viewers of news channel CNN will be very familiar with frequent guest, political commentator and contributor Van Jones, who also works as a co-host of a political debate program titled Crossfire.

The non-practicing attorney has further garnered wide popularity as the host of the self-titled show; The Van Jones show. For his work as a civil right and political activist, he has received multiple honors and awards, such as being named by Time Magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. He also bagged the president’s award from the National Association for Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), alongside Reebok International Human Rights Award.

More so, Jones has moved ahead to put his empowerment leadership abilities into play as the founder/co-founder of many non-profit organizations like Green for All and Dream Corps. In addition to that, he has penned down his creative ideas and initiatives in a good number of books. Read on to learn more about how he was able to achieve all he has managed as well as other details about his personal life.

Biography

The popular Tv host was born alongside his twin sister; Angela to Anthony Jones and Lorrette Jean in Jackson, Tennessee on the 20th of September, 1968. His father was a middle school principal while his mother worked as a high school teacher.

Van Jones attended one of his hometown’s public schools, Jackson Central-Merry High School. He later earned a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and Communication from the University of Tennessee at Martin (UT Martin) and then a Juris Doctorate from Yale Law School in Connecticut.

During this time, Jones bagged internship programs with many publication firms, including The Shreveport Times and Associated Press. He also at this time kicked off his career as a writer by publishing some of his own individual works and also making huge contributions to various campus-based publications, which included The Periscope; Vanderbilt University and the Fourteenth Circle; University of Tennessee.

Thanks to his passion for civil rights and social justice, Van Jones helped establish the Non-Governmental Organization, Ella Baker Center for Human Rights. A few years later, he co-founded Color of Change alongside James Rucker, which concentrates solely on Black issues. After leaving the organization, Jones established another NGO; Green For All, which had a vision of getting Americans out of poverty through the invention of green pathways.

Following his dedication towards achieving quality environmental development, Van Jones was appointed as the Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality, during Barrack Obama‘s administration. It’s quite unfortunate that he lasted in that position for just six months as he was forced to resign following a series of allegations, most notably one of him supporting a 9/11 conspiracy theory. Notwithstanding, he has moved on to achieve several accolades and awards as a result of his outstanding works.

Van Jones Family – Wife, Children, and Divorce

Van Jones with his ex-wife; Jana Carter

Van Jones was reported to have tied the knot in 2005 with his now ex-wife; Jana Carter, who was the director of the Search for Common Ground’s USA Racial Healing Program. Her father is also the younger brother of Jimmy Carter; the 39th President of the United States. The couple had two sons; Cabral and Mattai Jones.

Sadly in 2018, things between the couple reached rock bottom as Jana went ahead to file for divorce from her husband in a Los Angeles County Court. She requested spousal support along with joint custody of their children.

Is He Gay?

After having signed documents that concluded his divorce proceedings, rumors began to swirl around that the famous TV host and political contributor might be gay. But by all indications, Van Jones is far from being interested in people of his own gender. Furthermore, there are no concrete stories about him getting involved with a man.

Net Worth

To a large extent, it can be said that Van Jones is living a luxury lifestyle, thanks to his multiple successful endeavors. Having written two New York Times best-selling books, it is not surprising to find out that the Jackson, Tennessee-born author, who also has a TV show, has an estimated net worth of about $1.5 million.